MLB Replay....A new History

[George_Bell]

You gotta think that the reason the Phillies acquired Hank Aaron was to beat the Detroit Tigers. Well, they have their chance. Aaron didn’t have the greatest season, but he’s still an enormous bat in the middle of a star studded group. This Tigers team won 118 games, mostly without Willie Mays, who played just 60 games this year. Hes healthy and ready to win a 2^nd series.

[rjl518]

George...im laughing right now at that record for my Mets. That is just plain SAD!!

[HerbertMcHoover]

And seasons like that are the reasons why I love this dynasty.

Holy crap, Houston going 1-25 to start off the season. That is sick. I wonder what got them going.
I don't get how the Phillies were 28-17 at one point with Aaron, Killebrew, Kaline, Robinson and Rose. I can't imagine if they add one more bat to that lineup...
Oh my god... the Mets. 32-130... that is just... so hard to even imagine. Except for the Mets. Wow.
And the Mets were so bad that you didn't even mention the Washington Senators, which had 116 losses (which would have broken the record if not for the Mets), the Astros, the Athletics and the White Sox. Five teams with 100 losses. That NL is packed, by the way. Eight teams are .500 or better.

This World Series might just be better than that Milwaukee-Detroit World Series. The star power is remarkable. Really cannot wait for the next few seasons to see how this continues to unfold.

[George_Bell]

Mickey Mantle begins the series with a bang. He blasts a 3 run home run in the opening frame. Those runs would be all the Tigers needed, despite adding a few more. Detroit wins game one, 6-2.

Mickey Mantle led off the second inning with a solo shot, and Willie Mays hit a 2 run homer in the 3^rd inning to give Detroit a 3-1 lead. The Phillies fought back though, tying the game after a Duff McAuliffe 2 run single in the fifth. With 2 on in the eighth inning, Harmon Killebrew goes deep, and wins the game for the Phillies. Final score: 7-3 Philadelphia.

Ray Washburn and Earl Francis were entrenched in a pitching duel. The teams were tied at 2 heading into the 7^th inning. Mickey Mantle stepped up to the plate in and hit a go ahead solo home run, his third of the series. The Tigers Joe Nuxhall pitched the final 3 innings earning his 2^nd series save, and Detroit ties the series with a 3-2 win.

Harmon Killebrew hits a first inning 3 run homer to get the Phillies started off right. They would not score again. The Tigers scratched their way back, and took the lead on a Willie Kirkland two run shot. They added a few insurance runs, and take game five, 7-3.

Two errors and a Mickey Mantle's fourth home run of the series gave Detroit a 5-0 first inning lead. That’s pretty big in an elimination game. The lead was stretched to 6-0 when Don Mincher homered in the fifth. Brooks Robinson, Hank Aaron and Al Kaline all brought home runs in a 4 run Phillies sixth inning to close the gap. With a man on in the 7^th, Pete Rose took Joe Nuxhall deep to tie the game at 6!!! We remained tied unitl the final frame…..



Willie Mays scores the winning run and the Tigers have repeated as World Champions!!!

[George_Bell]

[George_Bell]

[George_Bell]

1964-65 Offseason News and Notes

The Worst team in baseball history has the first pick in the draft. I believe they made a very good pick. Johnny Bench is the newest NY Met. They passed on Nolan Ryan, Catfish Hunter and Bobby Bonds among others. Bench is only 16, which is good. The Mets aren’t competing next year. They need to build up a nucleus, so going with the raw talent is a good idea.

Former Athletic Walt Masterson was the only HOF nominee this year, but this commissioner turn him away. Masterson was very good, but this HOF is not for the very good. He's still probably the best pitcher in Philly/KC A's history.

Some of baseball’s best hitters appear on this list. It’s not a good list to be on, but it comes with the territory. Here’s are the players with the most strikeouts in baseball history.

[George_Bell]

1965 MLB Preview

Top Player

Top Pitcher

[HerbertMcHoover]

The big steals of the draft: Rollie Fingers at 11 for the Dodgers and Hal McRae at 19 for the Indians.

This season is going to be very exciting.

[rjl518]

My Mets got the Bench.....I see a world series in the future!!!

[George_Bell]

1965 MLB Regular Season

The Houston Astros and the New York Mets have both improved enormously if the early results are accurate. Through June 1^st, the Astros are 24-24, while the Mets, who posted the worst record in baseball history last year, are 21-27. Ya, I know, 21-27 is not very good, but they are only 9 wins away from last years mark. That's improvement.

2 months into the season, I notice that 17 year old Johnny Bench is sitting on the bench for the NY Mets. Instead of playing everyday in the minors, Bench has played in 28 MLB games, getting 51 at bats, with 9 hits. The Mets need to send this kid down. He has a 1 contact rating at the moment. He needs to develop. This is a huge mistake.


Bench

Shoulder Inflammation has ended the incredible season from knuckleballer Phil Niekro. Through 12 starts, the Indians pitcher was 6-1, with a 1.02 ERA. Teamed with Bob Gibson, the duo had the Indians in 1^st place at the time of the injury.


Niekro

Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays have both spent a good chunk of the season on the DL. That may be the main reason why on September 1^st, that the Tigers are trailing the Boston Red Sox by 3 games for the AL pennant. Mantle infact retired due to a broken hand. I obviously edited the career ending portion of that injury out. He won’t be back for a while though.

In the NL, the Reds are right behind the Phillies, trailing by just 3 games. Their league best offense, is getting a boost from Roberto Clemente, who is challenging for the batting title, at age 31. He was acquired from the Yankees back in 62. Clemente spent a few weeks on the DL this year, so he needs at bats for his batting title run.

Clemente

Wow!! Detroit goes 24-4 over the final month of the season. It didn’t really matter how the Red Sox did, as they weren’t going to be able to hold out against that record. In the NL, the Phillies distanced themselves from the pack to win another pennant, and we will have a Detroit/ Philly World series for the 3^rd straight season!

[George_Bell]

Originally Posted by HerbertMcHoover

The big steals of the draft: Rollie Fingers at 11 for the Dodgers and Hal McRae at 19 for the Indians.

This season is going to be very exciting.

Originally Posted by rjl518

My Mets got the Bench.....I see a world series in the future!!!

[George_Bell]

The star power of this series is slightly faded. Both Mickey Mantle and Hank Aaron will not be playing. Willie Mays has a bad everything, and isn’t the same player he was just 2 years ago. Harmon Killebrew is still slugging it though, and Al Kaline has emerged from a very good player into a star. This Detroit team is now lead by Don Mincher and Johnny Callison. Can they win a 3^rd straight title?

[rjl518]

Hey...tough first season for Johnny Bench...but he is so young with nothing but raw talent...he will improve...take that to the bank!

[George_Bell]

In game one of the World Series, Joey Jay pitches the game of his life. He will never be better than he was today. A third inning single by Bert Campaneris is the only hit the Tigers could muster. Jay ends up striking out 18 hitters, which is a World Series record. The Phillies win game one, 5-0.

Johnny Callison finally got the Tigers bats going, sparking a 5 run fourth inning, with a 3 run home run. Phillies first baseman Gordy Coleman hit 2 home runs during the game, but that wasn’t nearly enough as the Tigers take game two, 7-4.

Al Kaline and Harmon Killebrew took advantage of a Tigers error, which kept the inning alive with back to back singles, which plated 3 runs. The Tigers in the fifth. Willie Mays tripled home Ron Hansen, and later scored on a sac fly. Going into the bottom of the ninth, that’s where the score stood. 3-2 Phillies…..


Boom, Willie Mays wants another ring!! That’s a moment I wished really happened. Remember, this is a Willie Mays whose skills have been ravaged by injury. He's probably close to a injury plagued real life Mickey Mantle right now. Willie Mays wins game 3 with a walk off three run home run. 5-3 Tigers.

Charlie James starts the Tigers off well, with a 2 run shot in the first inning. Eddie Mathews hits a solo shot, and Johnny Callison puts the lead to 5-0 with a 2 run shot in the sixth. Tigers starter, Billy O’Dell allows 5 hits through 7 innings, and gets the 5-0 win.

The Tigers take an early 1-0 lead when Tommy Harper caps a 2-out rally with a RBI single. The Phillies Gordy Coleman hits his third home run of the series to tie it up in the fourth. The teams exchange runs in the sixth. Willie Mays hits a go ahead solo home run in the seventh, and Don Mincher follows with an insurance homer in the eighth. With 2 runners on in the Top of the ninth, Vada Pinson hits a game ending ground ball to Campaneris at SS. Detroit wins 4-2, and takes the series in 5!

[George_Bell]

[George_Bell]

[Husky417]

I actually thought this would be the year the Phillies broke through. It seemed like Detroit's run was starting to reach the end, because of the injuries. When you said Mickey Mantle was out for "a while" (instead of being retired) is it a 500-day injury, or something shorter?

Also, great stache on Rollie Fingers! Not many 19-year-olds could grow something like that

[rjl518]

maybe my mets will draft well in 1966!!

[George_Bell]

Originally Posted by Husky417

I actually thought this would be the year the Phillies broke through. It seemed like Detroit's run was starting to reach the end, because of the injuries. When you said Mickey Mantle was out for "a while" (instead of being retired) is it a 500-day injury, or something shorter?

Also, great stache on Rollie Fingers! Not many 19-year-olds could grow something like that

Normally, I change it to 500 days. It isn't to often I've done this though. Probably 20-30 times in the 65 years. With Mantle, this time I believe i made it 365 days. I guess i thought 2 years for a broken hand was too much.